FDI Inflows to Education

FDI Inflows to Education sector in India has been allowed by the Indian government. However, these are subjected to certain strict regulations. FDI Inflows to Education sector in India are expected to provide significant benefits to Indian students. Many foreign educational institutions and universities have expressed interest in setting up branches in India.

Education in India:

The education sector in India is one of the most important sectors, as it holds the key to social and economic development of the country. The Indian government formulated the National Policy on Education in 1986 and modified it in 1992.

The major objectives of the policy are to empower women, correct the regional and social imbalances that are there in the country, and also to ensure the development of the minorities of India. The government of India allotted funds to school education that came to around ` 17,133 crores in 2006- 2007 and the next year, this figure increased to ` 23,142 crores.

Advantages of FDI inflows to education sector in India are:

If international educational institutions come to India, then students would be able to get foreign education in India, cheaper.

The seats are limited in the Indian educational institutions and so foreign direct investment in the educational sector would result in more opportunities for the Indian students.

The Indian students will get libraries and labs that are of world class standards.

The setting up of international educational institutions in India will attract students from the neighboring countries to come and study in those institutions in India and this will help the country to become an important destination for education.

It will enable the Indian students to come in touch with the best professors from across the globe.

FDI in education will also lead to higher number of Indian students getting jobs in internationally acclaimed companies.

Availability of world class research facilities.

It will attract the topmost universities across the world to set up their branches in the country.

Foreign institutions planning to invest in the education sector in India:

FDI Inflows to Education sector in India are expected to increase, as many foreign educational institutions have submitted proposals to make investments in the sector. FDI Inflows to Education sector in India are expected to come from Egmont Imaginations which has submitted a proposal to establish 200 play schools in the country. Further FDI Inflows to Education sector in India are expected to come from major American universities such as, Georgia Institute of Technology, Yale, and Standford, as they are eager to establish greenfield campuses in the country.